Ever since the enactment of Public Act 16-67 last summer, school employers and contractors servicing them have faced the challenge of complying with new requirements for background checks for employees who will have direct contact with students. The central aspect of the legislation is a prohibition against offering employment to an applicant for a position with direct student contact unless the applicant is first required:
- To list the names and contact information for current or former school employers or other employers if the position otherwise caused the applicant to have contact with children;
- To provide a written authorization consenting to and authorizing current and former employers and the state Department of Education to disclose records and information and to release those entities from liability from such disclosures; and
- To provide a written statement giving certain information on prior abuse investigations involving the applicant.
The prospective employer must then contact the current and former employers listed and the state Department of Education to conduct a background check, seeking certain specified information. The law requires the current or former employers contacted to respond to the request for information.
The state Department of Education published a form for employers to use to conduct these checks. However, the employers cannot rely solely on the form, as it does not include the written authorization for the former employers and the state Department of Education to provide the information. Some of our clients have experienced resistance, particularly from private-sector employers, to disclosing the information. It is possible that the lack of a release form is driving this resistance. Our firm has developed an authorization/release form to fix this problem. We have also developed an applicant disclosure statement so that the applicant can indicate whether any of the scenarios pertaining to prior abuse investigations apply. In other words, using the state-developed forms will not, on its own, suffice for meeting the authorization/release and disclosure requirements.
Another issue employers have been facing is determining what it means for a position to involve “direct student contact.” The background checks are necessary before hiring for positions involving direct student contact, but where should the line be drawn? We have generally advised that any position in a school building should be treated as having direct student contact.
A similar issue is what it means for a current or former non-school position to have “caused the applicant to have contact with children.” These are the non-school-based positions that may need to be included in the background check. It is clear that a day care would need to be checked. But what if the applicant worked at an ice cream shop? What about a department store? We have advised clients to take a common-sense approach and contact the current or former employer if the position likely involved frequent interactions with children, but that it is not necessary if there is occasional, incidental contact.
Public Act 16-67 created several new obligations for school employers and, as is often the case, it may take a few years to work through the logistical implications and implement legislative fixes to certain problems. For now, employers should make good faith efforts to comply with the law in all respects, as it provides mechanisms designed to help schools avoid hiring employees with a history of child abuse.
Our team of labor/employment and education attorneys can assist with implementation of these new employment requirements for BOE personnel.